


Colors - Oikawa Tooru

by Adzuki_Bean



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Angst, Angst and Feels, Clueless Oikawa, F/M, One Shot, Platonic Iwaizumi, Soulmate AU-Colors, Unrequited, World is black-and-white until you meet your soulmate, reader is female, x Reader
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-06
Updated: 2019-10-06
Packaged: 2020-11-26 02:13:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,125
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20922470
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Adzuki_Bean/pseuds/Adzuki_Bean
Summary: The world remains painted in drab shades of black and white until you meet your soulmate.*This was just an idea of mine stuck in my head for a while so I don't have a great summary planned out for it lol.. But this is my first (published) fanfiction, so constructive criticism is welcome!***Earlier version posted on DeviantArt**





	Colors - Oikawa Tooru

The doors burst open as a rosy face filled the doorway, very much in contrast with the focused looks of the gym’s other occupants. The atmosphere of concentration was thick, and even the arrival of such a valued player did not dictate the movement of volleyballs through the air to cease.

"I’m here, Iwa-cha--Ittai!" The cheery greeting of Aoba Johsai’s infamous setter was interrupted by swift and precise volleyball to the face. He rubbed his nose gingerly, making sure that no actual damage had been done.

"Hidoi, Iwa-chan~" Oikawa’s eyes glittered with fake tears. Only the wing spiker paid him any mind as the rest of the team continued with practice like nothing out of the ordinary had occurred.

"Shut up, Trashykawa," Iwaizumi sneered as he retrieved his ball. "You’re late. I told you not to be late today, of all the days this week, and here you are showing up tardy to practice."

Iwaizumi continued to grumble a little under his breath, glancing at the clock sitting atop the doorway as Oikawa trudged towards the bleachers to put his stuff down and make sure his gear was all in order. After what he went through to get here, it would be troublesome, but not surprising, to find out that any of his knee pads or such were missing. It wouldn’t be the first time they found it in the hands of a fangirl either. Oikawa inwardly shuddered at the memory.

"It wasn’t my fault, Iwa-chan! I would have been here on time, but my fangirls came out of nowhere," Iwaizumi shook his head at the mention of Oikawa’s crazed fangirls. They were shameless. Even though they all knew that Oikawa wasn’t their soulmate, they still chased after him. Understandably, the chances of people finding their soulmates were not very high, but still… "I had to get rid of them somehow. Otherwise, there would have been quite the audience at today’s practice." Iwaizumi stiffened at Oikawa’s last comment.

That was one of the few things that Iwaizumi couldn’t stand. He was naturally a pretty laid-back guy, but whenever those annoying fangirls came to watch Oikawa at practice they made so much noise that no one could focus. It was distracting – not to mention detrimental to the team’s success as a whole – and they couldn’t have that.

"Whatever," Iwaizumi looked at the clock again. _Shoot_, he thought. _________’s been waiting at the train station for a while now. She’s going to kill me._ Iwaizumi quickly gathered his own things together. "Anyways, since you’re here now, you can take over," he said as he slung his duffle bag over his shoulder. A startled noise escaped the setter’s mouth.

"What do you mean?" Oikawa watched the other boy eyeball the clock for the third time since their conversation had started. "Where are you going?"

"Assikawa, I told you about this last week!" Iwaizumi’s hand connected roughly with the back of Oikawa’s head, eliciting a cry of discomfort from the latter. "My cousin is coming to stay with me for a while. I have to pick her up from the train station, and thanks to you, Shittykawa, I’m running extremely late." Oikawa rubbed the back of his head both in guilt and in an attempt to soothe the dull ache that now resided there.

"Goumen, Iwa-chan. I forgot... but please give ________ my warmest greetings!" Iwaizumi was already walking towards the gym’s double-doors. He waved over his shoulder nonchalantly, a sign that he had heard the setter’s request. He looked at the clock once more before exiting the gym. Yup, Iwaizumi sighed. ________’s definitely going to kill me.

* * *

The train ride into the Miyagi prefecture bored you. Sure, the scenery whizzing past was breathtaking... but only for those who could actually see the colors.

In a world where only those who had met their soulmates could see actual colors, it was hard to appreciate nature in all its radiant glory if you had not yet encountered that special person. Looking at life through tints and shades of black and white was not exciting at all.

“Not the most interesting view, is it?” You turned away from the window to look at the kind-faced lady sitting beside you. “The look on your face says it all,” she smiled. “I was at that stage in my life once, too. Before I met my soulmate.” Her eyes seemed to shine with a profound glow when she said “soulmate”. You were intrigued. “In fact, I believe I was just about your age when it happened.”

“Really?” Your curiosity had been piqued. “How did you meet?” Suddenly, the train ride didn’t seem so boring anymore.

This lady, whose name you learned was Margaret, was more than willing to share her experience with you. It was a rather plain tale, you had to admit, but she looked so excited as she reminisced that you couldn’t help but feel equally excited. Your talk eventually moved on to other things like school and sports, but it wasn’t long before your attention was brought back to the colors you could not see.

“Oh, the trees look marvelous at this time of year,” Margaret crooned as she gazed out the window. You instinctively turned to see the ‘marvelous’ sight she was referring to, but quickly remembered your temporary impediment.

Suddenly hopeful, you turned to Margaret with determination. “Margaret, do you think you could explain colors to me? I want to have some sort of understanding, just in case I never find my soulmate or something…” You trailed off, suddenly shy about your bold request. Margaret chuckled.

“I can try. Let’s see now… I can’t give you examples of things with the same color since you can’t see those either, but maybe if I describe how they feel…?” Margaret muttered to herself for a little bit. “Okay, how about this? Red is the color of violent anger, but at the same time, it could be passionate love or lust. Can you picture that?”

You closed your eyes and tried to see the picture Margaret was trying to paint for you with her words.

“Or how about yellow? Yellow can be the color of tender warmth, or happiness and contentment…” Your eyes were screwed shut in concentration, your brain trying its hardest to turn these translucent words into vibrant hues. The train ran over a bump, jostling the entire car and breaking your concentration.

You sighed, and Margaret put her hand on your back comfortingly. “Don’t worry about it, dear. It’s not uncommon for soulmates to never find each other, but you’re such a nice girl. I’m sure he’ll turn up soon.” Just then, you heard your destination being called out over the loudspeakers.

“Well, this is my stop.” You stood and stretched your limbs to shake off the stiffness of sitting for so long. “It was nice talking to you, Margaret. I hope you have a nice rest of your trip,” you said as you shook her hand. Margaret beamed at you, causing you to smile back in spite of the slight disappointment that weighed on your shoulders.

“Thank you for keeping me company, dearie. Good luck finding your soulmate!”

* * *

Stepping onto the platform of the train station, you decided to give your cousin a call.

Riiiiiing. Riiiiiing. Riiii- “Moshi moshi?”

“Hajime-kun? I’ve just arrived at the train station. Where are you?”

“**_A-ah, about that, ________..._**” You knew that what that tone of voice meant.

“Hajime-kun. Don’t tell that you’re not here yet, because I will snap your neck if you do,” you deadpanned into the phone receiver. Iwaizumi shivered at the coldness of your voice.

“**_M-matte, ________! It wasn’t my fault! Stupid Oikawa was late to practice, and I couldn’t just leave the guys._**” Iwaizumi could see the train station a ways off in the distance, and he started to visibly relax. “**I’m almost there now anyway, so just sit tight for a bit.**”

You shook your head and sighed. “Bakakawa strikes again, huh?” Just then, some more passengers stepped off the train and began to noisily swarm the platform where you stood. It had started to get crowded, and people began bumping into you in their attempts to exit and/or enter the train. The excess noise and bustling movements of the crowd started to overload your senses, so you looked for a more secluded area where you could wait for your cousin to arrive. A small cloud of smoke caught your attention, and you smiled upon locating its source: a café. “Alright, I’ll be in the café across the street. You know how I feel about crowds…” Iwaizumi nodded understandingly even though you couldn’t see him.

“**_I’ll pick you up from there, then,_**” he said. You smiled as the phone call ended, and began to make your way to “The Steamer’s Café.” What a cute name, you thought. The café front was designed to look like the front of an old steam engine and even had a funnel with white smoke billowing out from it on the roof.

Upon entering the café, you were relieved to see that they were not very busy at the moment. That meant you had all the time in the world to decide on a drink, and they had quite the variety to choose from.

In the end, you just ended up getting your favorite drink with an order of the café’s trademark Chugga-chip cookies. (They were like chocolate chip cookies, but way better!) Just as you were debating whether or not to save a few for your dear cousin, you heard your name being called.

“Hajime-kun!” You waved him over to your booth, and he sat down opposite you. “Here, taste.” Just as Iwaizumi opened his mouth to speak, you shoved an entire cookie into his mouth. Iwaizumi panicked a bit, trying not to choke on the treat. You giggled at his reaction. “I’ve decided to forgive you, Hajime-kun, because if you had been on time, I would never have discovered these amazing cookies.”

“I’m glad, ________,” Iwaizumi said, gasping for breath after swallowing the cookie. He cleared his throat. “Actually, you should be thanking Assikawa then. He’s the one who made me late.” You rolled your eyes at the thought of how that womanizer would take any form of thanks from you.

“I don’t think we need to inflate his ego anymore,” you laughed. “Anyway, let’s get going. I’m in serious need of a shower and a good night’s rest.” Iwaizumi smiled, and you both got up. Slinging your duffle bag over his shoulder, Iwaizumi gestured for you to exit the café first.

* * *

That night at Iwaizumi’s house, try as you might, you could not fall asleep. You were too excited about getting to meet his teammates in person the next day.

Closing your eyes, your shielded yourself from the drab world around you and dreamed of the colors you wished to see. You thought back to what Margaret had told you about colors on the train. _Red, the color of violent anger, but also of passionate love and lust... Yellow, the color of tender warmth and happiness..._ When she described the colors as emotions, it definitely helped you to internalize the information a bit, but it was still difficult to wrap your mind around the concept of color.

A languid yawn escaped your lips as you gave up trying to understand the intangible objects, a wave of drowsiness overtaking you as the question of who your soulmate even was came to mind. It’d be nice if he happened to be one of Hajime-kun’s friends, you mused with a soft smile.

Even though you had never met them in person, you already knew a lot about your cousin’s friends. Since you two were very close, you often video chatted with each other, which provided the perfect opportunity for you to get to know his friends as well. They loved to but into your conversations with a quick “Hi, ________!” and you had even given them all nicknames.

* * *

“It’s nice to finally meet you in person, Oikawa-san,” you grinned at him, eyes still closed. Upon opening your eyes, you were greeted with a startling sight. Confusion quickly spread across the planes of your face as you gazed upon the brown-eyed setter. He blinked back at you.

“What? Are my otherworldly looks too dazzling for you?” Oikawa ran a hand through his luscious chocolate locks, attempting to make a seductive face. You chuckled a little bit, but your gaze remained fixed on his bright, sparkling eyes. Am I just imagining things? His eyes aren’t black or white… they’re… You blinked several times as your eyes began to wander across not just his face, but his body and the rest of the gym as well. Things looked different from the way they had when you had entered the space just 10 minutes ago. They looked… brighter.

“________-chan? Are you okay?” Oikawa touched your shoulder and your breathing hitched. Color exploded before your very eyes. The muted tan of the waxed wooden floor, the bright yellows and dark blues of the volleyballs the rest of the team was practicing with, even the vibrant green alien on Oikawa’s shirt. Multiple hues came to life in your sight, all standing out, but simultaneously blending together to paint a beautifully vivid picture.

You opened your mouth to say something, but you couldn’t find the words to describe the happiness pooling in your stomach. You moved ever so slowly, so as not to jolt yourself awake from whatever dream you seemed to be experiencing, but it did not take long for you to realize that this was really happening. This wonderful world of color was coming to life, right here, right now, in front of your very eyes. You had found your soulmate. You turned to see Oikawa gazing at you with a look of wonder and joy that mirrored your own.

But without the wonder. Or joy for that matter. In fact, his face looked rather… bewildered.

“Um…?” Oikawa stared back at you. “Did I miss something?” It took a minute for you to comprehend the question, as you were slightly distracted by how different his lips looked now that they were in color. That color looks so soft… You distractedly wondered if they felt as soft as they looked.

“What?... Didn’t you see that?” You quirked your head to the side for emphasis. Oikawa mimicked you.

“See what?”

“That!” You exclaimed, gesturing to the entire area of the gym. “I mean, everything! You… You didn’t see that?” Oikawa looked around the room and then back at you. “You mean Iwa-chan’s spike? It is pretty awesome, huh?” He puffed out his chest and beamed with pride for his best friend. All the energy that had filled you up so quickly began to dissipate just as fast. Your hands fell limply to your sides.

“But when I saw you… your eyes… and when you touched me…” Your voice trailed off, and Oikawa looked at you in confusion.

“What do you mean, ________-chan? Did you see something?” Your eyelids bathed the newly shaded world around you in darkness. Curled fists shook as you willed yourself not to think the worst. Hanging your head, you faced away from the boy who had brought such a drastic change to your life within such a short amount of time.

“Yes,” you said firmly. “I saw them. The colors.”

There was a long pause. Volleyballs hit the floor over and over again, mingling their sound with that of tennis shoes squeaking against the polished gym floor and athletes giving it their all. Encouraging words and heartfelt gestures were warmly exchanged between team members, creating an almost tangible warmth. You shivered. Oikawa swallowed nervously and reached out once again to touch you.

“_-________-chan…” Your eyes fluttered open at the gentleness of his touch, and again the colors swirled around you. The happiness in your stomach was quickly replaced with a sicklier feeling. A wave of vertigo overtook you and you were forced to shut your eyes once again. Oikawa took hold of your shoulders to help steady you, but it felt more like he was squeezing every last drop of hope out of your heart. _It’s too much,_ you thought._ It’s all just too much right now._

** _It hurts._ **

You jerked away from Oikawa forcefully and wrapped your arms around yourself, trying to physically hold together what little of yourself you could mentally grasp.

Finally, you moved to gather your things. Oikawa could do nothing but watch as you began to make your way toward the doors of the gym. “Tell Hajime-kun that I went home, would you?” You hollowly addressed Oikawa without turning around. “He’ll be wondering where I’ve gone.” With that, you let the door shut behind you.

* * *

Getting home had been quite the adventure. Even though Hajime-kun had taught you which landmarks to look for, everything looked different through a curtain of colors and tears, so it took longer than it should have to get home. By the time you got to your room the sun was just beginning to set. It was a breathtaking array of oranges and reds with a few shades of pink strewed across the sky. It was almost enough to make you stop crying. Almost.

As the last rays of sunlight peeked through your window, the tears began to fall anew. A series of firm but polite knocks were heard over your quiet sobbing. “________-chan? It’s me,” Iwaizumi said, his voice muffled by the thickness of the door.

“Go away, Hajime-kun,” you said quietly. “I don’t want to see anyone right now.” Secretly, you wanted to talk to your cousin and best friend, but you didn’t want him seeing you like this.

You could hear Iwaizumi sigh as he sat on the ground leaning his back against your closed door. “Oikawa told me what happened. That dumbass…” You walked over to sit against the door on the opposite side. Iwaizumi sighed again. “I know there’s not much I can say that will help, but…” Iwaizumi grew quiet again. What could he say? There were no words powerful enough to fix this, and you both knew that. You looked out your window at the deep blue of the night, accented by tiny white stars scattered throughout its darkness.

“You know, they say we can’t see in color until we meet our soulmate. But they’re wrong. There’s one color I can see now that I saw all along.” You let out a short, self-deprecating laugh. “You know what color it is, Hajime-kun?” Iwaizumi didn’t answer. You closed your eyes as more tears silently made their way down your cheeks.

“It’s black. The color of emptiness and despair.”


End file.
